Needham Center Zoning - Community Opportunities Group, Inc.

In 2008, the Town of Needham received a grant to prepare a comprehensive plan and new zoning for Downtown Needham. COG served on a multi-disciplinary planning team and wrote the zoning to implement the Needham Center Plan.

Located at the crossroads of Great Plain Avenue, Highland Avenue, and Chestnut Street, Downtown Needham has offices, banks, a hospital, public buildings, a commuter rail station, and some stores and restaurants. As the central business district in one of Boston’s most desirable suburbs, Needham’s downtown has redevelopment possibilities and capacity to support more businesses. However, the Town’s zoning curtailed new investment. Taken together, the dimensional regulations all but froze buildings at their existing height and size. In addition, while Needham allowed some upper-story housing, the rules were so complicated and restrictive that they discouraged mixed-use buildings. Off-street parking requirements created even more obstacles. Still, Needham residents wanted to make sure that unlocking downtown’s development potential would not detract from the area’s historic character or cause more traffic congestion.

COG’s role involved translating all of the key ideas from visioning exercises and meetings of the Needham Center Planning Committee into understandable regulations and incentives in three overlay districts (one for each street). Although the overlay districts share many features, they have different design standards. In 2009, Town Meeting adopted all of the proposed zoning changes.